Atlas completes acquisition of TreeHouse’s snacks unit

GREENWICH, CONN. — Atlas Holdings L.L.C. has completed its $90 million acquisition of the snack nuts and trail mix business of TreeHouse Foods, Inc. The newly established, standalone company will be known as Flagstone Foods, which is the name the business operated under prior to being acquired by TreeHouse in June 2014 for $860 million.

Flagstone Foods is headquartered in Minneapolis and will be one of the largest manufacturers and distributors of private label healthy snacks in North America, including nuts, dried fruit and trail mixes. The company will source, process, package and distribute nuts, trail mixes and other wholesome snacks to retail customers across the country from three manufacturing plants in Robersonville, N.C.; El Paso, Texas; and Dothan, Ala.

Atlas said it has hired Robert Scalia as chief executive officer of Flagstone Foods. Mr. Scalia has several decades of experience in executive-level positions in food manufacturing, most recently as senior vice-president of business development and strategy at Hearthside Food Solutions. He earlier spent 25 years in leadership roles at General Mills, Nabisco, Kraft Foods and Hershey.

“We are very excited to partner with the strong team at Flagstone Foods and to welcome Bob Scalia as our c.e.o.,” said Michael Sher, partner at Atlas Holdings, a private investment firm that has 19 portfolio companies in a diverse range of industries, including aluminum processing, automotive, building material and others. The investment firm’s current portfolio does not include any other food manufacturers. “Consumers are consistently choosing private label brands from grocers, clubs and retailers they trust. Under Bob’s leadership, we believe Flagstone will build upon its already strong market presence and become the ‘go to’ healthy snacks company to meet that growing consumer demand.”

Mr. Scalia said he welcomes the opportunity to lead Flagstone.

“There are very few opportunities in the food industry that offer a breadth of product offerings, dedicated team of associates, blue-chip customer base, strong community partners and robust platform for growth,” he said. “Flagstone Foods is such an opportunity, and I am excited to join the team as its c.e.o. With the strong foundation already in place, coupled with Atlas’ operational and financial resources, we are committed to providing the highest quality products, innovative new offerings and unmatched service to our customers and channel partners. The sky is the limit for Flagstone, and I can’t wait to get started.”

The sale of TreeHouse’s snacks business ends a process that first came to light in December 2018, when TreeHouse executives were noncommittal about the future of the business. At that time, Steven T. Oakland, president and c.e.o. of TreeHouse, openly questioned during the company’s annual investor day whether the business was better suited to be run by TreeHouse or another company. Following the finalization of the sale on Aug. 2, Mr. Oakland said he believes the transaction best positions the Snacks division for success.

“Accomplishing a clean sale for TreeHouse allows us to immediately focus our efforts, pay down debt, have a healthier margin structure and improve our ability to drive shareholder value over time,” he said.